BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- A new accuser has stepped forward with serious allegations against Congressman Eric Swalwell, delivering a stirring and emotional account on Tuesday morning.
During a press conference held in Beverly Hills, Lonna Drewes shared a distressing narrative, claiming she was drugged, raped, and choked by Swalwell, who is soon to step down from his congressional role, back in 2018.
Swalwell, who has withdrawn from the gubernatorial race and announced his resignation, is confronting a growing number of accusations as well as increasing legal challenges.
Readers may find the following details unsettling.
Drewes recounted that she was working as a model and running a fashion software business when she first encountered Congressman Swalwell in 2018.
According to Drewes, after several friendly outings, it was on their third meeting that she alleges Swalwell drugged and assaulted her.
"We were supposed to go to a political event and he said he needed to get paperwork from his hotel room," Drewes said. "When I arrived at his hotel room I was already incapacitated, I couldn't move my arms or my body. He raped me and he choked me and while he was choking me I lost consciousness and I thought I died."
Drewes said she did not consent to sex with Swalwell.
She said she did not undergo a rape kit but disclosed the alleged assault to people close to her and documented it in her journal. She said she discussed the alleged rape during therapy sessions at a sexual assault center in Connecticut. She said it drove her to self-medicate in an unhealthy way.
Attorney Lisa Bloom said those journal entries, along with text messages and photographs, will be included in the forthcoming report to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
On Monday, Swalwell said he will step down from his seat after 13 years. The announcement came just as the 'House Ethics Committee' launched an investigation into the 45-year-old Congressman's actions.
The decision caps a swift political fall for the seven-term lawmaker, who had been seen as one of the leading candidates in California's gubernatorial race before dropping out Sunday after the allegations surfaced, claims he has continued to deny.
The San Francisco Chronicle, followed by CNN, first reported allegations that Swalwell had sexually assaulted a woman twice, including when she worked for him. CNN also reported that three other women alleged various kinds of sexual misconduct by Swalwell - including sending them unsolicited explicit messages or nude photos.
"I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I've made in my past," Swalwell said on social media. "I will fight the serious false allegation made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make."
On Tuesday, there was anger, shock and plenty of disappointment felt among constituents across political lines throughout Swalwell's district in the Bay Area.
"He's a complete dirtbag," one person said.
"I was considering voting for him, but now I just really disappointed," another said.